MIA; On Call; and MIA for the wedding

So I'm back - you wonder why I've been gone well here is a list:

1) LPC exam (which by some amazing grace and luck I passed thanks to good ole Jaime aka Dr. Goff!!)

2) um Texas Longhorns - yes I know I am an A&M fan but there is nothing to cheer about there and so I will let go of my allegiances and cheer for UT because I am loyal to the McCoy family!!

3) The opportunity to read anything I want on my own schedule - maybe I'll start writing about what I'm reading

4) As bad as it sounds I can actually watch some TV - I mean I got to see Dwight give birth to a watermelon instead of hearing about it at the clinic or at work the next day. Of course nobody where I work thinks the Office is the least bit funny but....

5) and probably the number one reason is my on call schedule


On Call is killing me!! Yes its good extra money to go on those student loans and yes it is usually really good at helping stack up those coveted couple family hours but I am not a fan. Here is how it works. A schedule is published of a rotation of all the admissions and crisis staff that rotate for on call. That means that on a week night from 5 pm to 8 am the next morning and from 8 am to 8am on Sat. and Sundays you have to carry around this little pager and sit or try to sleep in uneager anticipation of when the pager will go beepbeepbeep. Then you have to call and find out whether you are going to see a client at the ER, the jail, their house, or wherever the police have found them. The criteria to get page is the client must be suicidal, attempted suicide, homicidal or making threats, or so psychotic they are an imminent danger to themselves or others.
For a good illustration of my job watch the Law and Order SVU episode from October 14; seriously I thought they had filmed that in the Hendricks ER with me and one of my clients!!!
There are many frustrations but probably my greatest is how it handicaps you. One time I tried to go walking with a friend. The problem is you have to respond immediately so when you get paged you have to stop hope you remember to bring pen and a piece of paper to jot down the information, call the ER or the police or whoever called in the call, attempt to keep this all confidential, and then try and get to the sight in a representable manner not looking like you just went and sweated working out. The moral of that episode was: Rebekah when on call just stay at home!!!!
Yeah don't try and go out to eat either because about 5 minutes before you get your food beep beep beep. Church is also an issue. Pretty much any activity.
And sleep -well don't count on good sleep because whether you get paged or not you are sleeping in fear you won't hear the page so for someone who counts on a deep sound sleep to get refreshed well you might as well have been out on calls.
Oh and when you are the new kid on the block then you get to take all the shifts when someone suddenly gets sick at about 4pm or when they just flat don't want to do it. And then there is Saturday which you go back and forth on because its twice the pay but you give up your saturday but then you don't have to work the next day so you can knap. Oh but wait the old lady at work already has dibs on EVERY saturday of the month - oh well.
I just keep remembering its good pay and hours!!!

One more note; I worked hard to not be on call next weekend October 24th because one of my very very good friends from Dallas was getting married. Well today I go get the invitation to get directions to the place of the wedding and low and behold the wedding was yesterday. I am so frustrated at myself and sad because I have been talking about this wedding and scheduled everything around it for at least two or three months I just scheduled around October 24th instead of October 18th!!!!

So Nitro, N. Trinh, Nancy and Andy my friends - Sorry I guess I"ll have to enjoy the fun through your stories and pictures. I can't believe I missed it!!!